Paper Crafts
¤ An Age-Old Art
The paper making industry in the Kagazi Mohulla area of Sanganer
(Around Jaipur) uses up the waste cotton and silk rags from the block
printing industry.
The artists in the village are used to enthusiastic visitors and
their questions, so those interested in the craft are welcome to ask
the craftspersons all about it.
The craftspersons are the descendents of those who, for generations,
have been making paper for the Mughals and Rajputs.
Then came the British, and with them the age of mill-made paper. Thus
the craft received a big blow in the 18th century. But the
dedicated craftspersons of Sanganer stuck to their artistic profession
in spite of dire poverty.
¤ Expertise Artisans
Salim Kagazi happens to be of one such family whose Handmade Paper
and Board Industries on Gramudyog Road is a flourishing concern. A. L.
Paper House is another big name for paper and paper products. So get
yourself loads of this handmade paper, for you'll never get anything
like them anywhere.
¤ The Crafts Made Out of Paper
There’s a lot you can do with paper and Delhiites have been
doing it for a long period of time.
Kites : You might have seen
kites but there’s a whole lot more on offer. Starting with kites
then, you can find them in the patang (kite) market in Lal Kuan bazaar
in Old Delhi. These colourful, feather-light kites come in all shapes
and sizes – and so they should, after all, flying kites is an
important national pastime.
Tazia : is the next most popular paper craft. A commemorative
paper structure, it consists of coloured bits of paper pasted on a
bamboo frame and carried in the Moharram procession (mourning to mark
the martyrdom of the Prophet’s son). Tazias are used for a happy
purpose too during the Phoolwalon ki Sair held every September.
Effigy-making : Another papercraft that takes a lot of doing
is effigy-making. Effigy-makers have it really good when the Hindu
festival of Dusshera comes round. Huge effigies of Ravana, Kumbhkarna
and Meghnad (the three bad guys from epic Ramayana) are laboriously
erected and then burnt on Dusshera to uphold the victory of truth and
justice. |
